Rotting, Rotten
by Justmeallthetime
Summary: How does a cookie crumble? Piece by piece.
1. Rotten

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

Sesshomaru was a cookie with golden cookie crumbs that rotted from the inside out. Created by his father, the clever cookie cutter, and his mother, the oven that scorched him, he was the perfect treat, the perfect mode of deception. Delicious, but poisonous. Golden, and so very precariously perched at the top of the cookie jar.

Imperative.

But then, over a space of time – it was not a one-day shock – his mother deteriorated and raged without coherent words.

"Disloyal dog!" She screamed at his father, who stood calmly, and she was promptly put outside. Sesshomaru did not hear from her or see her ever again.

It was upsetting, to say the least, but his father said that there was no room for anxiousness or anger or fear, and that Sesshomaru's mother simply didn't exist anymore.

"Listen to _me_, pup." And he told himself that he would, forever and ever and ever.

O0OoO0O

Forever lasted for about a year, until a new cookie popped out of a plain, mortal oven right beneath his nose.

Suddenly, Sesshomaru wasn't golden enough for his father's attention. Not any of it.

The great dog general visited his usual places: his bedchambers (he had company, constant company throughout the night, and Sesshomaru smelled it and heard it and burned small, acid figures into the walls. It depicted a cookie thief being killed), his dojo, anywhere on his land outdoors within ten miles, the kitchens, and the nursery.

Never Sesshomaru's room. Not anymore.

And as the hanyou cried and shrieked throughout that particular night with his ever expanding lungs, the elder brother – the more stale of the two – left his home.

'_Listen to me, pup.'_

He would listen to no one.

OoO0O0O

AN: Only two or three chapters after this; it should be a fairly short story. Feedback is appreciated!


	2. A Trail of Cookie Crumbs

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

It was terribly easy to be bitter, until he convinced himself that _no_, bitterness was for helpless fools who felt wronged in life, and that he was just a strong individual who refused to stay where he wasn't appreciated.

Except he wasn't appreciated anywhere.

The humans started first. With their roars of killing the beast and presumptuously shielding their women, who were, for the most part, ugly anyway, Sesshomaru realized that their brains were just too simple to take in his greatness or see superiority for what it was.

It was puzzling. It was saddening. Lastly it was annoying, so he killed them, damn sure that in a sick and twisted way, he had done them a great favor.

Then lo and behold, as he stalked on – not quite indifferently, almost angrily; the homes he passed mocked him – he came across demons, many of them. Some lower level, grotesque, and operating as if they had no thought process, others faintly powerful, a small few taiyoukai and leaders of vast tribes like himself.

And one by one, Sesshomaru had to cut them all down.

He moved on.

O0OoO0O

One day, he came across a village that was already laid waste.

There he found Rin.

He really didn't mean to care enough to look at the faces of the dead, but when that child's wide, still eyes gazed without sight, from her place, at his boots, he saw brown and red and the paleness of her skin and saved her without a thought.

She followed him, shaking and shivering and afraid to look back. He determined right then and there, nodding slightly to himself, that he would teach her to move forward, like him.

Rin learned – but no child should have to learn the lesson of leaving everything behind, the taiyoukai knew that _well_ - so Sesshomaru supposed that if they were going to be ignored and left alone, they might as well be alone together.

And together, they did not look back.

OoO0O0O

AN: Another short chapter down! Don't worry, Kagome will be coming in this soon. Feedback is appreciated!


	3. Swallowed Whole

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

Time went on.

Rin followed him everywhere and for the first time in a long time, Sesshomaru felt tranquil. There was something incredibly pure about the child, something so honest and humble that he found that he could not turn her away if he wanted to. She was easily delighted and unusually shrewd; cautious and perceptive and without airs.

Rin was terribly young, but she would never be weak, like other humans, because Sesshomaru protected her.

He vowed that he would never fail.

O0OoO0O

"You've grown powerful, dog," a silky voice mused.

Sesshomaru paused on the trail, and immediately stepped in front of Rin. The air in front of him distorted and warped and _shimmered _with a dense and dark aura, and the floating head of a male demon appeared. He had violet eyes, long black hair, thin lips curved into a malicious smirk, and –

He looked positively _ravenous_.

Rin whimpered. Sesshomaru shot her a cautionary glance. "You will not pass through here."

Naraku laughed. "Who will stop me?"

OoO0O0O

The rain poured, and the earth swallowed her whole.

Rin was terribly young, but she was never weak, like other humans, because Sesshomaru protected her.

Sesshomaru failed.

OoO0O0O

AN: Well, that's the end of another segment! Don't worry, all will be explained in the next one or two chapters. As it turns out, it looks as if this story will be slightly longer than intended, but that just means more drama, which is a plus! Oh, and Kagome will be making an entrance in the next chapter, promise. Feedback is appreciated!


	4. The Cookie Jar is Broken

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

There was a mound at his feet without a marker.

He felt disgraced; no it was worse than that. It was the itchy thrumming of his heart that stilled him as he tried, _tried _to smooth the dirt over Rin's grave; it made him feel more worthless than the grass beneath his boots. His hands shook, his nostrils flared, and his chest pained him every time he took a breath.

At first, he had laid her out on the ground, a few paces away from where everything had gone to _hell_, and ran her through over and over and _over_ with Tenseiga. It wouldn't work; he felt tiny tendrils of power pushing from the sword against his skin, rejecting him, rejecting Rin; _it wouldn't work_, but he had to try, he had to make the sword bring her back to life.

Back to smiling.

It didn't work.

And then, he _raged_. He lashed out and destroyed everything around them. The trees, the wildlife, the growth; he killed _everything_, only taking care to leave Rin's body, that still lay there so innocently, undisturbed.

His acid couldn't do enough damage.

He smashed his fists through all the remains.

Sesshomaru remembered so many things about her. Her fascination with flowers and the way that she beamed at him, even when he never had a smile to offer her in return. She hated baths but loved catching fish in the ponds and rivers for dinner. He recalled how she followed him, as traumatized as she must have been, without fear or questions, something that _no one _had ever done before. Finally, he remembered the day that he brought her back to life. She choked on the acrid smoke and shivered at the destruction that she didn't survive.

Everything was destroyed and torn apart and suddenly _Sesshomaru_ _had to stop_.

_No._ His lungs contracted painfully. And he closed his eyes, because he had destroyed everything over this one little girl, and had done a damned better job than her first murderers did.

He looked down at his hands, bruised and blackened with ash. "Have _I_ killed her this time?"

_Perhaps._

And then finally, there was nothing to do but bury her; something, he felt, that he should have done the first time around.

OoO0O0O

AN: Okay, so Kagome wasn't in this chapter (I should really stop making promises, but I won't), but she will be coming up soon. There will be plenty of time for her to come and stay anyway; this story is going to be a lot longer than intended, but that's where all the fun is! And mucho thanks to my first reviewer, llebreknit; I nearly had a heart attack when I saw the notification! You brought up a lot of true and interesting points that will be in the chapters to come, don't worry :).


	5. Who Will Fix It?

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

"So. Fucking. _Useless_. What the hell do you mean, you can't sense any shards?"

Kagome huffed impatiently and blew her bangs out of her eyes. Inuyasha, _the prick,_ had her standing there, rotating and changing positions on her feet like a TV antenna trying to find jewel shards, while he growled and alternatively paced up and down, scuffing his toes in the dirt.

Yes. Because strutting around like an angry hen was so much more constructive than what she was doing. Useless _indeed._

Inuyasha paused momentarily, walked right up to her face and stared her down, sneering. "Well, wench?"

Kagome took a deep, calming breath and focused a steady gaze on a point somewhere above his shoulder. She would not – and she steeled her nerves with all the patience she had – hurt him this time. No. That power was only to be used when he was being a _complete _asshole, but he was only being a _partial _asshole so she would just blame it on his doggy hormones and –

"_Bitch_, are you even fucking listening to me?" Good God, he was screaming at her.

Well… she tried.

"_Sit_." She didn't even look down to where he had fallen at her feet, she was so annoyed.

Kagome _knew_ that she split the jewel to pieces; she _knew_ that it was her fault because well, Inuyasha didn't have a problem with reminding her even chance he got. A bubble of anger burst in the pit of her stomach at the sight of him struggling to his feet, dusting the dirt from his haori and glowering at her murderously. She was trying, seriously _trying_ to help him find it; didn't that count for something?

With the way his amber eyes shone with death threats, she guessed not.

He opened his mouth in a snarl, but Kagome beat him to the punch. "Don't bother yelling, I know what you're going to say," she said warily. He was still glaring at her, flexing his claws angrily, so she looked away. Did he really hate her that much?

She sighed. "I'm going to go search for a jewel shard."

"Finally –" Inuyasha growled.

"Alone," she raised her hand to wave off the inevitable, violent protests. "No, you can't come with me; I can take care of myself despite what you think," Kagome continued angrily. "I don't need your help to do something _useful_."

O0OoO0O

Kagome sat him one more time for good measure and stalked off.

Of course, Inuyasha wasn't one to let his precious valuables, shard detectors included, run off and get themselves killed – "Keh, she couldn't protect herself against a fucking _kitten."_ – so he followed her very discreetly away from the small collection of huts and into the forest. Unfortunately, she both heard and sensed him, and after a few moments of silent fuming and cursing, she sat him into the ground again… and again… and again.

After which he would swear loudly, struggle to get back up, and continue to stalk her.

Eventually, it took her yelling 'sit' over her shoulder every thirty seconds or so to get Inuyasha to stop tailing her. When it finally worked, Inuyasha was distinctively dirtier, and Kagome was just a tiny bit happier to be alone with her thoughts.

And then her mood just soured all over again.

Inuyasha had some nerve, Kagome thought heatedly. She hadn't been in the Feudal Era for _three weeks_, and he was already chewing her ass out for an unfortunate fluke with her arrow. So she was a crappy shot with the bow and arrow… so what? It wasn't as if _he _was in a decent position to grab the jewel, so she took a chance to try and help him out. Besides, he never would have seen the jewel again in the first place if she hadn't saved him from eternal slumber via an arrow and a tree. Where was the damn gratitude?

"It never existed," She muttered to herself, her eyes downcast. The more she walked, the more orange and brown and red leaves crunched under her school shoes; that was music that she was content to listen to for hours.

The gruff half demon could be such an _asshole_ sometimes. He had a permanent chip on his red-clad shoulder, and he hated her. What real reason did she have to go back? Surely with her uselessness, he could find a replacement, a decent one that could cook _and _defend herself _and _shoot arrows at targets five feet away successfully _and _fix whatever the hell was eating him from the inside out. Because Kagome could do none of those things and –

"_So. Fucking. Useless."_

She faltered. "Oh."

"_Well, wench?"_

She really… couldn't fix this mess, could she?

_Oh._

_What_ was to stop her from walking away?

Kagome continued walking, and crunched on orange and brown and red leaves a bit more solemnly this time. It was music that she was content to, and did indeed listen to for hours, until she dissolved into tears and her body succumbed to exhaustion.

OoO0O0O

AN: And there's Kagome, as promised, with Inuyasha too! It seems like more than one person is already in pieces, how fitting. :) Feedback is appreciated!


	6. Let's Find the Pieces

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

There were no breaks for Kagome Higurashi when Inuyasha found her fast asleep, sprawled on the ground between two, lumbering maples.

"Get the fuck up, we don't have time."

Something sharp was jabbing her side. Kagome couldn't see what it was, naturally, because her eyes were still sealed shut, but she wished it a very, merry trip to hell because she was terribly groggy and grumpy and understandably homicidal.

A voice above her snorted. "Lazy ass."

"Nrrrgh." The ground was wonderfully cool against her skin. And the air was warm; did the sun come up already?

Inuyasha poked with renewed force, "Hurry up!"

"…"

"Well, you asked for it."

O0OoO0O

Kagome did not know where Inuyasha found that particular tall, wooden pail. She did not know where he found water that cold to fill it with, either. All she knew was that one minute she was dreaming about bicycles and purple eyes, and the next she was a shivering, shuddering mess.

She blindly reached for the nearest object – her shoe, as it turned out – and chucked it at his unsuspecting head.

"_What was that for?_" Kagome sputtered angrily. "And what- how are you even _here_?"

The last she knew, he was eating dirt miles away while she was preoccupied with her emotional breakdown. But if nothing else, Kagome thanked a god somewhere up there for small mercies. At least her shoe hit its mark.

"I'm saving your ass, obviously. So if you're done taking your beauty nap, princess, _can we get the fuck out of here already_?"

Kagome blinked, then paled. For once Inuyasha sounded serious, without the usual tinges of annoyance or anger. If she could take a guess, she'd say he sounded urgent.

She stood up and began to wring her skirt, which was also soaked, nervously. "Why? What's going on?" An urgent Inuyasha was as apprehensive Inuyasha, and the brash hanyou was only cautious when there was something big ahead.

He smiled grimly, but he eyes held no humor at all. "I need to get you someplace safe before I handle this shit."

In one single, stinging moment Kagome recalled all that had happened the day before. '_Useless'_. It was all she could do to resist strangling the hanyou, and then consequently crying all over him.

Her chest was overcome by a strange heat.

"Do you really think I'm that weak that you need to hide me?" Kagome hissed lowly. It was so _stupid_. She had actually thought that he was beginning to take her seriously, like she was a part of things and not just an outsider looking in. But no, to him she was still just a tool; a means to achieving an end. Even worse, she was a _weak_ tool.

"No you fucking harpy, it's - !"

"Because _we_ could march up there right now, and _we_ could totally take whatever it is!"

Inuyasha shot her a half-hooded, half-amused glance. "Maybe I could wench."

He made sure to put the emphasis on 'I'. Kagome planted her feet into the ground.

"I'm coming with you."

She wondered how it was possible that one second, he was eyeing her like she was something inferior that he'd pinned to the ground and the next, he was emitting these guttural little warning growls like a mother lioness looking out for her young. It was weird. _He_ was weird. "No, you're not."

"I'm part of this too! I broke the jewel and I'm…" Kagome broke off morosely. "I'm going to help you get it back."

And that was that. Because no matter how worthless he made her feel, he actually did need her and she would stick around. It was her responsibility; she was bound to travel and hunt down crap with him and life, she thought sadly, officially sucked.

Inuyasha tensed. "This has nothing to do with the _shards_. It's personal."

"What…?"

"It's my brother."

And for all of his strange glances, Inuyasha suddenly wasn't making eye contact anymore.

OoO0O0O

AN: And there you go! A confrontation is coming up soon; ahh, family drama. Much thanks to my reviewers, llebreknit, GinnyMastrani, and NyokoAkame! And to answer llebreknit's question, yes, it starts at an early point in Kagome's timeline until Rin's death, only the timelines are very very close to each other, as you'll see in the next chapter or two.

Feedback is appreciated!


	7. And Glue Them Together

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

"Since when do you have a brother?"

"Just shut up and move."

"I mean… you never mentioned him before; is he older or what?"

"Walk. _Please_."

"Maybe if you just answered my questions…"

"Or _maybe_, I could just drop you off right here and leave you! You know, like I _wanted _to."

"Mmm. No thanks."

"Then. Stop. Talking."

"Eh… I don't think so. I'm awfully curious, you know? Mama always told me that that's a good trait, but it's been getting me into trouble for _years_ now. Like this whole well business," Kagome tutted. "Oh! That reminds me, I need to head home soon! School starts next week, can you believe it? This summer really hasn't been long enough – "

"_Oh for fuck's sake_!"

Hmm. Rather touchy. Kagome frowned, slipped off her remaining shoe, and twirled it casually around her index finger. Just in case.

Inuyasha flattened his ears against his head. He looked tortured. "Could you please, _please_ be quiet? Yell your fucking brains out after we get there and I kill him; _I don't care_! But for _now_ –"

"Really Inuyasha," Kagome interrupted, shooting him a disapproving look. "Do you have to be so loud? You said that we're close by. Just how do you expect to sneak up on your brother and attack him – which is totally dysfunctional, by the way – if you keep yelling like that?"

"…"

Kagome beamed.

"Onwards then!"

O0OoO0O

"That evil, slippery bastard," Inuyasha snarled.

"Evil?"

"_There_. Look."

Her brown eyes widened.

Utter destruction. Beyond the thinned, slope of trees that they hid behind lay nothing but a huge oval of barren land. Things might have grown in that area in the past, Kagome guessed, but there certainly would be no growth in the future. Everything was singed or, oddly enough, melted to the ground, and even the grass was brown and black and withered.

And in the midst of it all was –

_Evil?_

No.

Something much more pitiful.

She took a step forward. Then another. She thought she heard a little girl crying somewhere.

What was she doing? Kagome didn't know. The air, perfumed with dryness and death hung around her head like a sad, sad veil. She was walking towards him, the supposed evil one, and it felt like the freshness of turning over a hundred new leaves and the stinging pain of the paper cuts they left behind.

And it was drawing her in like a moth to a flame.

Kagome felt like laughing, crying, living. Why was he making her feel…?

Inuyasha was hissing something vile at her from behind a charred tree, but Kagome couldn't decipher a word. Not that it mattered, because her feet were on a journey of their own and, as much as her brain yelled at her to stop and run away while she was still _breathing_, her heart went out to 'evil, slippery bastard'.

And from the mound of dirt that he was kneeling, _trembling_ in front of, she could see why.

Ten steps away.

She could see the gold slits that were his eyes and his magenta stripes, half hidden by a shield of hair. _Silver_. Longer than Inuyasha's. Prettier maybe.

Six steps away.

He was breathing hard and breathing furiously, and his thin nostrils flared with each new burst of air. Did he run there? And for all that, did he get there too late? The fresh, upturned earth spoke volumes. A grave. Yes, much too late.

Two steps away.

_And I guess I'm too late too._

Kagome dropped to her knees.

He never looked up.

She never expected him to.

Her feet ran out of places to go and –

Sesshomaru never had a place in the world to begin with.

Kagome hugged him.

OoO0O0O

AN: Finally, they meet! I've wanted to dish out this particular meeting chapters ago, but it always seemed like I just had other things to type to lead up to it. Here it is now though! I wonder what Sesshomaru's reaction will be? Will he kill her on the spot or start sobbing on her shoulder? :) Neither, hopefully; but who knows what goodness the next chapter will hold?

Much thanks to knifethrower, llebreknit, GinnyMastrani, AngelWing1138, and omica21. You have no idea how excited I got when I saw your reviews! :) Thank you so very much for taking out the time to tell me what you think; it's scary how much it motivates me to type up these chapters.

Feedback is appreciated!


	8. There's No Aftertaste

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

Regret wasn't something Sesshomaru lived with. It might have gnawed at his skin some times in the past; the day he returned to his father's home, found it in ruins and left _almost_ as empty-handed as he had come, and the night that Inuyasha found him many centuries ago, barefoot and crying and alone, when he _almost_ but didn't quite finish off the pathetic child.

Inuyasha was an abomination, yes, but he was of their father's blood. His powerful, beautiful, _disgusting _blood. Unfortunately, that counted for something, a lot of something actually, so he left the pup at the mercy of the gods, turned his back and found a few hundred miles to put between them, all the while praying for rain – to cover his scent – and spitting in anger. He really hadn't wanted to have seen the child that made him leave.

Sesshomaru finally realized, though, that true regret was unshakable, unforgettable.

He regretted seeing Rin's love and happiness everyday of their time together and thinking that simple things couldn't touch him. Affect him. And he truly regretted _her_. He could admit that, finally, after days of wondering what the hell was wrong with him and _still_ doing nothing to fix it. It was wrong. She was human, and she wasn't his to care for. It was unnatural, and he _should have_ –

_Father._

He should have known better.

_I understand - _

But remembrance was always, and he would learn.

Because at the end of the day, the regret didn't destroy him as it should have.

_But I am not sorry._

_He _killed _it_.

O0OoO0O

Sesshomaru smiled and the world shivered around him. Golden eyes shifted to the slim arms that encircled him, to the face of girl – _the human_ – that held him, to their position on the ground, to the grave that he _would_ stop mourning.

He took it all in.

His smile widened.

_We're all a sorry bunch of fools and – _

He grabbed Kagome by the throat.

_I am Lord and King._

And squeezed. Slowly.

OoO0O0O

AN: Hmmm, was that what you expected? I sure hope not! Much, much thanks to my reviewers; you guys are so encouraging! Thank you so very much for telling me what you think about these chapters; it really helps me shape this story along. :)

Feedback is always appreciated!


	9. A Sticky Paste

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

How does a cookie crumble?

Piece by piece.

O0O0OoO

Rotting, Rotten

_This_ was how it was supposed to be, always. Sesshomaru was sure of it. He felt powerful; strong enough to kill quickly and merciless enough to toy with his victim first. _Here _was his redemption, his breath, his glory. This girl, gasping for breath and flailing, panicked and deathly white would be the first, the pinnacle of change. He would kill her and forget everything else.

He would become himself.

He _would_.

Suddenly his strained, stretched smile melted away into nothingness. Long black strands of hair had fallen forward onto the girl's blue-tinged face and onto his arm. He gently brushed her bangs out of her eyes with his free hand.

_Brown eyes, hnn?_

Sesshomaru lessened the strength of his grip on her throat and leaned forward slowly. In all her shock, the girl had never once looked away since he confronted her and he respected that, _used_ that; the full force of his gaze bored into her until it darted to her quivering lips and defiant, angry, _scared _chin. He stopped a hair's breath away from her ear. "Death," Sesshomaru murmured softly, "is prolific. It bears fruit. It grows. It abounds." His eyes drifted shut and he allowed himself to enjoy the warmth of her body so close to his. It would be the last time.

He continued. "It spreads." She could breathe easier now; he had loosened his grip on her throat so that his hand fit no tighter than a choker around her neck. The girl knew better than to move, though, and they both knew it. She would be dead the second she so much as twitched.

"It kills."

He was so close that he could feel her pulse jump. Her heart race. He could hear her shaky question before she even asked it.

"Did it… did it k-kill you too?"

Did it? He breathed in the scent of her hair and opened his eyes slowly.

"_Yes."_

And his crushing hold was back on her throat.

She closed her own eyes this time, effectively looking into herself and away from him. Sesshomaru felt that this was appropriate.

And feeling the chill of loneliness _once again_ course through his veins, he stood, dragging the girl up with him until she was up in the air, feet dangling and hands at her sides, helpless. She still wasn't looking at him.

It was the last time he would feel. He ignored the presence of Rin six feet below his feet and the presence of the human girl less than a foot above his head and _he_ –

_I am not sorry._

Fell back as his nose was crushed with all the force of a pissed-off hanyou's foot.

Inuyasha caught a falling Kagome in his arms and scowled at her bruised neck. What a fucking nuisance.

"Do you see what I mean _now_?"

OoO0O0O

AN: *Sighs* The end of another chapter, although I'm not so pleased with this one. It feels like it's so incomplete, so filler-ish but… eh, it is what it is. But on to another topic… :) for the wildcard that was last chapter; I know it was definitely unexpected. But what I had been considering (keeping Sesshomaru despondent and sad and consequently playing on Kagome's soft heart enough to convince Inuyasha to let Sesshomaru join their group of two) just seemed too easy. This cookie is going to be much tougher to crack than that! Plus, I had a feeling that a lot of people were going to expect that, so I kind of threw a little loop in there :). But I hope you still enjoy this story and this chapter… if only a little bit.

Feedback, please! Lend me your thoughts!


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